Happy Monday Everyone !!! It has been a couple of months since I last sent out the "Message from the WSBCC Vice President" and I apologize for the delay. First let me welcome the newest members to our Team !!! We appreciate your investing your time and money to be a part of the Winston Salem Black Chamber of Commerce. It is the intention of the leadership team of the WSBCC to make it a fruitful and rewarding relationship. I want to stress the word relationship. Relationships are ideally two-way. We (the leadership team) will continue providing opportunities for our members (and the community at large) to network, have increased opportunities to increase business, have access to training opportunities, and (with the help of our new and improved website) be a marketing tool to get the word out to the community that you are willing and able to meet their needs. Our monthly meetings (the 2nd Tuesday of each month at 6:30p at the Enterprise Center in Winston Salem on MLK Jr. Drive unless otherwise noted) are an excellent place to get to meet other members, share about the business you are involved in, and Build Relationships for future business opportunities. In this past May, we had a "Mixer" in collaboration with the City of Winston Salem, the Enterprise Center, the Winston Salem Chamber of Commerce, and the Forsyth Tech Small Business Center that was outstanding !!! It was well attended, we had an opportunity to learn some things and I believe the Mayor of Winston Salem attended as well. In June, we participated in the Juneteenth Celebration at Innovation Quarter. It was another event that was well attended had great networking opportunities, and had entertainment and something for all ages. Kudos to Cheryl Harry for facilitating such a fantastic experience for the community. In July, we had Carol Davis, the Executive Director for the S.G. Atkins Community Development Corporation as our guest. Carol did a magnificent job in articulating what she and her team is doing to make a positive difference in the community. Carol also took questions that touched on financing for businesses, marketing, and the importance of being prepared for opportunities that present themselves. Tomorrow (8/13/2019) we will be collaborating with ACCESS at their location at Bailey Park in downtown Winston Salem for our monthly meeting. It will begin promptly at 6:30p. Parking should not be a problem and there will be refreshments. I encourage you to stop by and hear some powerful information that can help you grow your business and learn about potential new opportunities. Next, I STRONGLY encourage you to visit our new and much improved website. It continues to offer a wealth of information regarding current members, benefits of being a member, who our partners are, great photos and info from past events you may have missed, and opportunities for you to give us feedback about how to better meet your needs. If you don't tell us how will we know ? Finally, please consider being involved with the Winston Salem Black Chamber of Commerce in more than just a member role. We are always seeking committed, visionary people to help with our committees, our events, and assisting our members. You can reach out to me directly or reach out to one of the leadership team (Randon, Andrew, Gloria, Cynthia or Valerie). We appreciate you and all that you do to make our communities a better place. Continued success in your endeavors and I look forward to seeing you tomorrow at Bailey Park at 6:30p All the best, Calvin
Calvin F. Patterson Chairman-CEO Earnest Harvest LLC PO Box 17134 Winston Salem, NC 27116 336-813-5073 www.earnestharvest.org